[Herb Sevush]"Which might make sense except for the fact that, under duress, they put Legacy back on the market."

Only through phone sales directly from Apple. I do think that even that restriction may have involved "legal" handling. We don't know what the agreement was that hung Apple. Perhaps as long as all marketing through web, retail, etc. has ceased they can do this. Perhaps there was another potential conflict regarding closing off facilities to additional seats without warning. I've heard various permutations of this. Nothing that could even be remotely confirmed and many aspects refuted. One example is that there was a claim that only "current FCS license holders" could be additional seats but the refutation is that's not being enforced.

I don't think we'll know the details for a long time or ever (well, until the "tell all" book comes out). I do think there's a legal tangle involved or the avoidance of one.

[Herb Sevush]"Writing your own code from scratch does not in any way inure you to the threat of IP violations."

It's not just the code but the code and what they do, don't do with it that allows them to build a more defensible wall. I think Apple is doing that quite deliberately.

Just because a kevlar vest doesn't prevent you from being shot in the head doesn't mean you eschew it . . . just as seat belts won't protect from death in every imaginable form of auto accident, you still wear one. Apple is creating a defense. That's the reason. Nothing isn't impenetrable but that doesn't mean you don't do to the best of your ability.